Life lessons – from a 6 year old and a leaf!

Life Lessons-Don’t miss them

Working with children everyday is very grounding. Alongside my studies and research, I learn so much from children everyday, that when I actually stop and listen and watch them, I really don’t need all the books. Children have the simple answers. They have the Life lessons we need, through their innocence and the way they look at the world around them.

A few months ago my 6 year old son became my teacher.

It was during the school run and like most mums it is a run as we also have to collect my daughter from another school and be home to take over from my mum’s nurse. We were walking quite fast as per usual to the car, it was cold, windy and about to rain.

As we walked through the school grounds together having a chat, my little man climbs over giant rocks, jumping off them and zigging and zagging through any obstacle he could find. Have you noticed how many children never choose the easy path? Even when you are in a hurry. Children really live for the actual moments, not just in minutes but per second. Why just walk when you can still get to your destination with a bit of fun along the way.

Life Lessons from a Simple Leaf

As we reach the foot path, he suddenly stopped, looked down and picked up a very ordinary looking leaf.

The footpath was covered in leaves.

“Mummy look at this beautful leaf” he says, like he has found a rare diamond

“Uhmm – yes its a nice enough leaf”

This is the actual leaf he picked up, I mean it’s just a leaf isn’t it?

Not according to Mr 6.

His eyes lit up “Mummy its amazing & beautiful, look at the colour, its so bright, you can see its bits inside. It’s like a star but feels like a nacho and its so different to the other leaves- I love autumn, the trees share their leaves for me to play with”

Well, talk about stopping me in my tracks, I was caught up in his moment, the rushness inside me stopped and he made me look at that simple leaf through the eyes and world of a child.

What did I learn from my son and his beautiful leaf?

* Gratefulness for special moments with him

* Nature is beautiful, if you take the time to look

* We are all like the leaf, with our own special qualities

* We are 1 in a million

* Taking the time to stop and appreciate the small things

* It can be fun on the harder path, it’s the outlook and attitude we have

* Everyone & everything is unique

* Never Judge on appearances

* We all have our own beauty

Life Lessons are all around us

I do know how difficult it can be to just stop and appreciate, but like a child, even just stopping for a few seconds can help us feel a little better. Life does go far too fast, our children grow up far too quickly and yes the reality is we grow older too. Hopefully older and wiser, and like the leaf they will be someone out there that loves you for who you are, your uniqueness and your qualities. Remember to also find a leaf amongst the others that may need a hug or a smile from you. We all need to feel appreciated and special just like Mr 6’s amazing leaf.

Child Behaviourist and researcher. Creator of "Less tantrums. More smiles". I look at the bigger picture and think outside the box when working with children and their behaviour. Their world is different. As adults we sometimes forget this. Happiness Creator in my spare time. Eater of chocolate and cake.

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Comments

I have just discovered your site during my search for help/tips on the tricky journey that is raising children.Thank you. You give wonderful advice -and for me, this post in particular sums up the most important lessons we all need to learn and pass on to our children.

Beautiful post. It really struck a chord with me. There are times when I am rushing around, and my 3 year old is stopping every few steps. As everyone probably knows it is just impossible to make a three year old rush. lol It is a big world to little people and so much to take in and explore. I am going to try and slow down a bit and see things from his perspective. Thank you xx

Lovely post – taking a moment each day to spend with our children will be a life long lesson and skill we could all benefit from. I think its important to get down on our hands and knees with our kids to experience life at its simplest! Thank you for a great read! x

Loved reading this post! It’s so true. My son makes me stop and remember the simple things in life all the time. As adults, we get so caught up in the rush, that we overlook beauty in its many forms. It’s great to see things from a child’s perspective. They are so young, innocent and carefree!

I realised the same thing a little while back on a playground walk with my 2 and 4 year old girls. I was in a rush to get there but the girls were more than happy to enjoy the experience of getting there. Bugs were poked, flowers picked.

I was reminded that often it’s the journey and not the destination that we should focus on.

I thought that this was a beautiful inspiring post. If only we all took a little time out of our day to look at the world through the eyes of a child. To see the beauty and the marvels that are all around us. I see that beauty every day when I see my daughters smile and as much as I get stressed and tired and frustrated that smile never ceases to make me stop, chill out and start over. She has made me appreciate everything so much more and I can never thank her enough for that.

I was meant to read this post today!
I try to be mindful, to slow down and enjoy the lovely everyday moments with my 4yo DD and 6yo DS, heaven knows the time since they were born has flown by.

Sometimes though, I think if we don’t stop and REALLY ABSORB the lesson, it comes back to you in other ways, until you really do get it.
It’s taken the cancer diagnoses of both my Mum and Dad in the last year for me to really, truly get this message. Finally.

So slow down, exhale, hold your childrens hands and dawdle for a bit alongside them. Life is short and sweet. Just like childhood.

I too feel that we don’t enjoy the small joys of life because we are always busy in our daily routines.
Kids are the real examples of living in present moment. Kids are always busy in exploring new things whether it be in a park,at the beach,at a play area or even at home they will find out some hidden treasure ( which is useless for us ) and enjoy their time with the new thing.
I think we should also take out some time to live in present and enjoy evry moment o our life.

your post is so true. I love to take DS to the beach to find the most beautiful shells, which we must bring home! He is so super observant…really looking forward to holidays next month travelling through places we have not seen before, to see what he sees too.

I love reading your posts, my girls have really grounded me and shown me if your so busy preparing for life you miss out on life it self. Sometimes a tug of the hand saying “Look Mummy” Is what you need to bring you back into the now. Thanks Nat

After reading your post i was reminded of how my mum always stopped when we were kids and showed us things just like Mr 6. IT was nice to be reminded and to live through that again ( my mum has Asperger’s) so innocent and now it is time to stop and look at things with my children and take the time. Thank you for reminding me to slow down and enjoy while they are still young 🙂

This is beautiful. My mum loves leaves and always collects and admires leaves while out walking. Now I do the same with my LO.
I have been enjoying your posts on FB, so glad I popped over and visited your website! x Sibylla (target competition)